Have you ever noticed when you’re away from home, your haircare routine is stripped back to basics and yet your mane is looking its very best? You may think it’s the sea breeze, the salt water, or the speedy air drying - and it very much might be. Or - and it’s a big one - it could be the water quality.
According to ScaleGuard.co.uk, around 60 per cent of the UK is classed as having hard or very hard water. For many of us born and living in these areas, this may not mean much. We’ve grown up our whole lives with chalky limestone-infused H2O and it feels par for the course.
It’s only when you go somewhere like the north or further afield like Costa Rica or Iceland where they enjoy kinder, purer water quality that you really notice the difference on your locks. Suddenly it’s softer, shinier and more manageable.
Anabel Kingsley, Trichologist at haircare brand Philip Kingsley explains, “The mineral content of the water in your area (or where you are holidaying) can temporarily affect how your strands feel, look and behave. Many people notice their hair is dryer when they shampoo with hard water, that it frizzes more easily, lacks shine and that not as much lather is created”.
The likes of calcium and magnesium in hard water can build-up on the strands, may strip it of its natural oils and make it heavier, prone to breakage, and needing a moisture boost. It may even impact coloured hair, causing fresh-from-the-salon dye to fade more rapidly.
One way to counteract this is to call on a shampoo that will work harder for you. Urban living calls for a deeply cleansing formulation that will remove unwanted minerals that may clog the follicles and should instead restore your locks to its shining glory.
Kingsley also suggests that “If you find your hair is dry, dull, less manageable and lacklustre when shampooing with hard water, try the following:
- Use a pre-shampoo conditioning treatment once to twice a week, like Philip Kingsley’s Elasticizer. This plumps the hair shaft with moisture and seals the outer cuticle, creating shine and improving manageability.
- To combat frizz, apply a lightweight smoothing oil or serum before styling.
- Consider swapping your usual conditioner out for a richer one.
- Use a detoxifying hair and scalp treatment. I love our Vitamin C Jelly, which removes hard water mineral deposits on your hair.”
Shop the best clarifying shampoos to counteract the effects of hard water below
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HELLO KLEAN Hard Water Shampoo
Dedicated to ensuring that hard water doesn’t steal your hair’s shine, HELLO KLEAN takes a 360 approach. First it offers a filter that is easily attached to your current shower set-up, then there’s a body wash for skin and, of course, a shampoo and conditioner duo.
Forget desert-like dryness that mineral build-up can cause by restoring hydrating, softness and shine with the combination of lathering oat protein, licorice root extract and lactic acid that work in tandem to bring moisture, strengthens the individual strands and encourage growth.
Buy now £18.00, Selfridges
R+Co Oblivion Clarifying Shampoo
R+Co has created this detox product to remove minerals that may shorten the time between salon appointments and impact your hair’s texture. It is a gently cleansing product that can be used daily so that colour remains vivid and fresh, even if you’re prone to dipping in chlorine water or live in hard water areas.
The not-so secret ingredient is one you’ll recognise from teenage zit-zapping routines; witch hazel. It dervied from Japan and has been chosen for its purifying ability, working on both the strands and scalp to give you hair that ultra-clean and fresh feeling.
Buy now £23.00, Face the Future
Larry King Hair Care City Life Shampoo
The entirety of legendary hair stylist Larry King’s collection has been put through its paces in its London-based salons. The celebrity clientele and roster of talented coiffeurs have deemed this a must-buy and with one use, you’ll see why. The first step in achieving that “effortless” tousled aesthetic that is King’s signature is to eliminate pollution, product build-up and the dulling minerals in hard water.
To do that, you need a product that is packed with moisture yet is able to tackle those salty residues. The cocktail of nourishing vitamin E with oil-controlling zinc PCA is paired with centella asiatica extract that’s an antibacterial. When you’re finished and need a top up - and you will want one - a refill is available.
Buy now £40.00, Cult Beauty
Living Proof Perfect Hair Day Triple Detox Shampoo
From the addictive aroma of this shampoo, you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s a case of fragrance over function but Living Proof proves its prowess once again with a deeply cleansing formula. Much like its cult dry shampoo, this product is science led from the outset, employing the benefits of a triple action process that starts with a hard water mineral-removing chelating agent.
This is set alongside a sulphate-free surfactant that eliminates dullness-causing pollution and is rounded off with a negatively charged polymer to take remnants of previous haircare away as you massage it into your scalp. It takes the trifecta of build-up away, while remaining gentle and leaving hair soft to the touch and full of lustre.
Buy now £27.00, Space NK
Act+Acre Cold Processed Cleanse Shampoo
Hard water minerals may distort or darken colour, impact shine and take the joy out of your styling process, but this cleanser from new hair label on the block Act+Acre is formulated to lift unwanted minerals and heavy metals to leave strands feeling their strongest.
The brand takes a different approach to many others on the market and to ensure its potency, they are created through a trademarked Cold Processed system. Powered by plants, the nutrients remain in tact and stronger than ever for the healthy hair of your dreams. The shampoo works to break down stress-causing dirt, oil and pollution without stripping moisture. There are no sulphates; instead, you’ll find apple amino acids and glycerin improving hydration and balancing the scalp.
Buy now £28.00, Cult Beauty
OUAI Detox Shampoo
If you have noticed that your tresses are dry, brittle, brassy or dull, it may not be an entire overhaul of your haircare collection that you need. It could be as little as a simple shampoo switch-up and Jen Atkin’s OUAI label has just the ticket.
The hair styling legend brought this hair wash day essential to market to clear clogged follicles and give your hair a hard reset. Designed to be used once a week, it harnesses the power of apple cider vinegar to stop hard water minerals interferring with your shine. There’s also hydrolysed keratin to repair, rebuild and fortify your locks. To top it all off, you will catch a whiff of the lychee, rose, bergamot, cedarwood and white must-enriched fragrance with every swish of your strands.
Buy now £28.00, Cult Beauty
K18 Peptide Prep Detox Shampoo
K18 keeps things minimal with its product line-up. The brand stresses that you don’t need a 12-step hair routine to get the healthy hair that you desire - you just need science. Give limp and lacklustre lengths a helping hand by incorporating this detox shampoo as part of your weekly hair routine.
Just once a week is all that is required to restore shine and counteract the effects of minerals which could cause the likes of hair fall. It’s safe to be used on coloured hair - even if the black colourway is at first quite jarring. This is down to the inclusion of activated charcoal that removes oils, metals and dirt without stripping away the good stuff.
Buy now £39.00, Cult Beauty
VIRTUE Purifying Shampoo
It is not always the case that a detox product feels like a luxurious experience but VIRTUE manages just that, quelling the effects of pollution, hard water, dirt and grime, while still feeling like a pleasure to apply.
You’ll relish hair wash day with the weekly inclusion of the Purifying Shampoo that cleanses the tresses and leaves them shiny and healthy from root to tip. Much like the entirety of the brand’s collection, this product stars its signature trademarked ingredient; Alpha Keratin 60ku that fortifies your mane.
Buy now £23.80, lookfantastic
Color Wow Color Security Shampoo
Hard water can wreak havoc on your colour. You step out of the salon, wash your hair just once and it can fade dramatically. Well, not with this shampoo on your shower shelf. Color Wow has created this product specifically to give your dye the vibrancy that it deserves. Leave your hair brighter, shinier, and silkier as well as your hue extended. The best part is that literally anyone can use the formula, a testament to how gentle it is. The lack of sulphates ensure that even if you have extensions or your hair is thinning, you can maximise its benefits.
Buy now £21.50, Cult Beauty
Olaplex No. 4C Bond Maintenance Clarifying Shampoo
When your tresses are in distress, Olaplex is likely your first port of call. Helpfully numbered in accordance with the steps applied, the brand has recently extended its collection of No.4 products aka the shampoo. You’ll find the classic, the toning blonde enhancerand this Clarifying Shampoo.
Still offering the trademarked Bond Building Technology that the brand is known for, in this product, it is paired with a Broad-Spectrum Clarifying System that challenges oil, product build-up, chlorine, hard water, metals and pollutant heads on to clean and cleanse. Hair is fabulous with little to no fuss required.
Buy now £28.00, lookfantastic
